Another emotional cloud besieged the rally world as Dakar rider Edwin Straver passed away on the morning of January 24. The Dakar Organisation was informed by Edwin’s family members about the unfortunate news.
48-year-old Edwin Straver, a former motocross rider, was taking part in his third Dakar this year. He finished 30th overall and first in the Original by Motul class in 2019. He entered the same class this year.
In Dakar 2020, the Dutch rider crashed 124 km into the timed sector timed special of stage 11 (SHUBAYTAH–HARADH) on Thursday, 16th January 2020. A medical team was immediately despatched by helicopter to the accident spot. They found Edwin in cardiac arrest and proceeded with resuscitation efforts. Edwin was then airlifted to a hospital in Riyadh where he was admitted to the intensive care unit before being later repatriated back to the Netherlands.
Portuguese rider Paulo Gonçalves also lost his life during Dakar 2020. He met with a fatal accident after 276 km into stage 7’s special.
